PD Editorial: Measles makes an unwelcome comeback

Measles is painful, contagious and potentially deadly. The viral disease was effectively eradicated in the United States by the end of the 20th century, but now it’s back.

California is one of 17 states with confirmed cases so far this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In one reported instance, a single child exposed 300 people from 16 counties during two hospital visits this month in Sacramento and San Joaquin counties.

There were only 58 cases nationally in 2023. So far this year, 45 have been reported. The cause of this unwelcome comeback is no mystery: declining vaccination rates.

Sure, some children missed vaccinations during the pandemic, and a few unlucky people get sick even though they have been fully vaccinated. But the main culprit is the continued spread of medical misinformation.

False claims about vaccines didn’t originate during COVID, but attacks on science from the far right and the far left increased exponentially during the pandemic and, amplified by social media, they’re still fueling unfounded fears about vaccines.

The truth is vaccines are safe, effective time-tested weapons against infectious diseases. When enough people are vaccinated, an otherwise contagious disease like measles can’t keep spreading. That’s called herd immunity.

COVID shots, developed in record time, allowed people to resume normal lives.

Vaccines conquered polio and smallpox and spared millions of children from measles, mumps, chickenpox and whooping cough. Flu shots provide a safe and effective defense against influenza viruses. Vaccines carry almost no risk, and the reward is immense — remaining healthy, maybe even saving your life.

Unfortunately, the rate of routine childhood vaccinations hit a 10-year-low in 2023, according to the CDC, disrupting herd immunity and putting about 250,000 kindergartners at risk for measles.

Most children recover from measles, but some don’t.

Before a vaccine was developed in 1963, measles outbreaks occurred every two to three years and killed about 2.6 million people a year worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. In the United States, 3 million to 4 million people got measles and 400 to 500 died each year.

Risks accompanying nonfatal cases are more serious than a fever and an itchy rash. Some children develop pneumonia or encephalitis and many need to be hospitalized, exposing them to other illnesses.

Measles is preventable, and California has advantages as it tries to keep the present outbreak from spreading further. One is a common-sense state law requiring nearly all children to be fully vaccinated before starting school. Fortunately for California, there is no top state official behaving like Florida’s surgeon general, a source of false information about vaccines.

Nevertheless, some California physicians say more parents are asking about delaying vaccines for their children, which only puts them at greater risk. “It just prolongs the time where you have a child who’s unprotected and potentially can get sick from these diseases,” Dr. Eric Ball, an Orange County pediatrician, told the Los Angeles Times.

Some children are too young to be vaccinated, and some people with compromised immunity cannot be vaccinated. If the rest of us keep up with our shots, we can help protect them — and once again leave these preventable diseases to the history books.

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